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A 12-year-old boy died after copying the new chroming social media trend, his family suspects.
Less than an hour after his family had returned home from vacation, Oliver Gorman was found unresponsive in his bedroom in May last year.
However, despite extensive attempts to revive him, he tragically died.
During an inquest into Oliver’s death at South Manchester Coroners’ Court, assistant coroner Andrew Bridgman concluded the schoolboy did not mean to take his own life.
The court was told about the challenge known as chroming, which the coroner and Oliver’s family believe may have led to his death.
What is chroming?
A number of empty deodorant cans were found lying around Oliver’s room after he died, while a post-mortem found his death was as a result of the inhalation of butane, a propellant found in many aerosol deodorants.
This has led to suspicions he was chroming – a social media trend where people film themselves getting high from the fumes of products such as deodorants.
It is not known whether he was aware of the trend or had filmed himself inhaling the aerosols, as police and his family were unable to access to his phone.
Nevertheless, Oliver’s death has prompted renewed calls for awareness.
Mr. Bridgman expressed ‘major concern’ over dangerous TikTok challenges and called for improved warning labels and potential age restrictions on aerosol deodorants.
‘I didn’t know they could kill you’
“It was the speed of it. He had 20 minutes in his bedroom and he was gone.
“We don’t want any mother or father to have to do what I had to do for my boy… the CPR and mouth-to-mouth. I will never get that image out of my head.”
Clare, who has been a hairdresser for more than 25 years, said that she’d never heard of chroming and, even as someone who worked around hairspray for decades, never knew solvents could kill.
She said: “All I knew about solvents was that they were flammable. I didn’t know they could kill you, especially that quick.”
She told other parents not to purchase them, saying: “Don’t have them in your home. Take every precaution you can. Listen to your gut.
“I never thought it would happen to my child.”
What are the health effects of chroming?
Problems from chroming might include:
- Injury or death from falls, road accidents, drowning, etc.
- Greater chance of violence.
- Chest pains or unusual heart rate.
- Hallucinations and psychosis.
- Falling unconscious, going into a coma, or death.
- Seizures or blackouts.
It can affect muscle control or your ability to walk, and may even result in brain damage, liver damage or kidney damage due to chemical poisoning.
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